When working with energy efficiency, many companies naturally address the highest peaks. Doing so, many tend to overlook the less viable energy drains that run in the background.
If a building use unnecessary energy during periods of minimal demand, significant savings potentially exist with a few adjustments.
The challenge lies in identifying these adjustments.
What makes the base load unnecessarily high?
There are several common mistakes and errors that contribute to high base loads: Ventilation and lighting that are on despite low or no occupancy are two examples. Another frequent mistake is heating and cooling systems working against each other for extended periods. Or preset regulations that simply fail to function as expected.
Although most of these might only consume a few megawatts, they do so every hour, every single day. If you manage to close these small leaks, the total saving potential is substantial.
Submetering
Most companies only work with the total consumption in buildings. However, to identifying the root causes of a high base load you need to dig deeper. You need submetering.
In addition to the main intake, we recommend measuring the largest circuits to get an understanding of where the energy actually is consumed. The goal should be that a minimum of energy is unaccounted for.
This graph shows the energy consumption in a museum through 24 hours. In this example, six circuits accounted for more than 50 % of the total consumption and there were surprisingly small difference between peak hours and when the museum was closed.
We provide the foundation you need
Acquiring reliable energy data can be both challenging and resource-demanding. This is why we have made energy data our sole purpose. Our goal is to provide a robust foundation for decision-making, enabling smarter choices and energy consumption.
